Argentina exhibit shows dictatorship-era abuses to women

Thursday

Mar 14, 2019 at 5:38 PMMar 14, 2019 at 5:39 PM

BUENOS AIRES, Argentina (AP) " Graciela Garcia Romero says she was in her 20s when a former navy captain turned her into a sex slave in Buenos Aires.

Ex-Navy Capt. Jorge Acosta, who is now serving life in prison for numerous human rights crimes, would take her to apartments and rape her during Argentina's 1976-1983 military dictatorship, said Garcia, now 69.

"They would leave me the whole weekend until Acosta arrived... then, they would bring me back here," she added, referring to the notorious detention center at the former Naval Mechanics School, or ESMA.

Her testimony is now part of a new exhibit titled "Being women at the ESMA, a testimony to look back," in which 28 women recount harrowing stories of dictatorship-era gender-based violence. The exhibit was inaugurated Thursday.

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